Miss J

Seventh grade was such an awkward stage in my past. My family moved to California from Washington and I attended two 7th grade classes in two cities (did I mention that I also attended 3 kindergarten classes  in 2 states?) We moved quite a bit, which meant I had to learn how to make friends quickly and was labeled the “New Kid” often.

I remember trying to fit in (using Aqua Net hairspray helped), desperately wanting to wear the coolest clothes  (anything that matched my sparkly laces on my L.A. Gear tennis shoes) and wanting to hang out at the mall.

To say I was amazed when I met Miss J is an understatement. I learned that she can sing, dance, act, play the piano, play basketball and was involved in gymnastics. Did I mention that she’s only 13? A bit of a contrast to my 13-year-old self…

 

Talented. Beautiful.

I’m so honored to meet such a wonderful, talented young lady…

Silhouette

Summer. It’s right around the corner. I can feel it.

Literally.

When it’s 90+ degrees, I can’t believe it’s still technically spring. I do love summer, but I’m dreading the days when it’ll already be 80 degrees at 8am.

On the other hand, I define summer by long days filled with playing outside, popsicles dripping down my kids’ arms and enjoying lazy mornings that aren’t consumed with rushing around in order to get the kiddos to school on time.

My favorite time of day? Twilight. I love it when the sun has gone down over the horizon but it’s still light. The moments right before twilight is my favorite time to shoot. Right before the sun sets, everything is blanketed with a warm, golden light.

I had the opportunity to take photos of a dear friend on the beach as she and her husband were expecting their first child. I couldn’t have asked for a more beautiful sight for these two beautiful people.

If you’d like to see more silhouette photos, please visit www.rocktheshotforum.com or click on the button below. Enjoy, and have a good summer (oops, I mean spring!)

Found

Sometimes you’re too busy to notice. Sometimes you’re not looking at all. Maybe you’ve already met that person and you just don’t know it yet.

Then one day, you realize.

You’ve found them. And they’ve found you.

Just like that.

37 weeks

Being a mother is definitely amazing. It’s rewarding, stressful and joyous all at the same time. For me, being pregnant was more of a challenge, but my friend Susan makes it look easy. With a toddler in tow, she makes 37 weeks look absolutely beautiful.

 

 

 

 

Enjoying Life

Summer, sun and being tickled by Dad. How much better can it get?

 

Baby E

Becoming a parent is a big step. One you can’t really learn from a book; that you can’t experience until you become one.

One that will change your life forever.

Babies have a wonderful way of transforming us. They encourage us to be better parents. They teach us patience. And how to survive on 3 hours of sleep, 30 minutes at a time.

Sometimes we find our identity when we become a parent. Sometimes we lose it. Everyone experiences their own pathway to Parenthood, and that road is filled with sharp turns and unexpected dips as well as clear paths leading to new and exciting places.

I’m not sure what path my friend Kristi will be taking. All I know is that when Baby E finally arrived, it was love at first sight.

Fun Families Rock!

I had the pleasure of combining a senior session and family session. And I say pleasure because the family was so fun. I meet a lot of families and see many personalities and I can definitely say that his family is super-duper wacky. Oh, and the mother of the family was also my high school classmate. So I can say that. So there.

I am slowly getting over the fact that I’m old (ish,) and that I have high school classmates who have children who are graduating from high school themselves. Another sign that I’m old (ish?) I’d rather go to Trader Joe’s during the week versus the weekend. I’m just sayin’.

Anyhow, I want to thank the R Family for a great day, being open to my crazy ideas and going with the flow. You definitely rock.

The Importance of Being a Social Butterfly

I’m glad I was a good student in high school. I had a 4.86 GPA, was involved in A.S.B. and actually liked school. Getting up in the morning, however, was a different story (why did I have cheerleading at 6:30am everyday?!?) I liked learning (thanks, Mr. Nath and Mrs. Olivas!), having a say in planning on-campus events and of course, socializing.

And even though I concentrated on the grades/academic part of high school, I’m glad I also made it a point to meet new people. Because who knew that 20 years later, we’d all be grown-ups with jobs, kids and responsibilities?

I recently re-connected with a high school classmate who owns his own flower business. He has introduced me to some of his colleagues, one of which invited me to a Secret Garden-themed bridal shoot. I was more than happy to be a part of it.

A special thanks to Irises Designs and Nina Fleurina!

Two of Us

When you find the person, the person you are supposed to be with, the person you are supposed to spend the rest of your life with, everything seems to just fall into place.

It’s perfect.

You learn to accept and not expect. You learn how to be patient. You learn how to share your favorite dessert. Even if you don’t really want to.

We are continually growing and learning. Continually thriving to do more, do it better and do it with integrity. With love.

Love is much more than candy hearts and flowers. It’s a relationship. And just like anything else, when you choose to nurture it, it’ll bloom into something much more than you started with. Something beautiful. Something fabulous.